GACE Elementary Education (P-5) (702) key terms

The ability to notice and manipulate the individual sounds, called phonemes, in spoken words, such as blending or segmenting sounds without using printed letters.

The smallest single unit of sound in speech that can change a word's meaning, such as the three distinct sounds in the spoken word cat.

An instructional approach that teaches students the predictable sound-letter relationships of written language so they can decode unfamiliar printed words.

The process of translating printed letters and letter patterns into spoken sounds in order to read an unfamiliar word.

Reading text accurately, at a reasonable pace, and with appropriate expression and phrasing so that attention can focus on meaning.

The construction of meaning from text by connecting words, sentences, and background knowledge to understand what an author conveys.

The organized background knowledge a reader already holds about a topic, which is activated to interpret and make sense of new text.

Drawing a conclusion that the text implies but does not state directly, by combining clues in the passage with the reader's own knowledge.

The central point or most important message of a passage, which the supporting details explain, develop, or illustrate.

The organizational pattern an author uses to arrange ideas, such as compare and contrast, cause and effect, sequence, or problem and solution.

Nonfiction writing whose purpose is to inform, explain, or describe a topic using facts, examples, and logical organization.

The value a digit has because of its position in a number, so that in 472 the 4 means four hundreds and the 7 means seven tens.

Manipulatives representing ones as small cubes, tens as rods, hundreds as flats, and thousands as large cubes, used to build understanding of place value.

Exchanging a group of ten ones for one ten, or one ten for ten ones, when adding or subtracting multi-digit numbers.

A division situation in which a total is shared equally among a known number of groups, and the unknown is how many are in each group.

A rectangular arrangement of objects in rows and columns used to represent multiplication and division and to build understanding of area.

The amount of flat surface a two-dimensional shape covers, measured in square units such as square centimeters.

The total distance around the outside edge of a closed two-dimensional figure, found by adding the lengths of all its sides.

Different fractions that name the same amount, such as one half and two fourths, produced by multiplying or dividing numerator and denominator by the same number.

The bottom number of a fraction, which tells into how many equal parts the whole has been divided.

A straight line marked with evenly spaced points representing numbers, used to compare values, show fractions, and model addition and subtraction.

The process of asking questions, forming predictions, gathering evidence through observation or testing, and explaining results based on that evidence.

Information gathered directly through the senses or with measuring tools, forming the evidence on which scientific explanations are built.

A testable predicted answer to a scientific question, stated so that evidence gathered in an investigation could support or contradict it.

The series of stages an organism passes through from the beginning of life to the production of offspring, such as egg, larva, pupa, and adult.

An inherited feature or behavior that helps an organism survive and reproduce in its particular environment.

A model showing the path by which energy passes from one organism to another, beginning with a producer and continuing through consumers.

A firsthand record or artifact created by someone who participated in or witnessed an event, such as a diary, letter, photograph, or interview.

An account that interprets or summarizes information from primary sources, such as a textbook chapter or encyclopedia article.

A graphic display that arranges events in the order they occurred along a line, showing sequence and the amount of time between events.

The four main compass directions of north, south, east, and west, used with maps and globes to describe location and movement.

The relationship between a distance on a map and the actual distance on the ground, often shown as a ratio or a marked bar.

A movement that carries the body from one place to another, such as walking, running, hopping, skipping, or jumping.

Basic patterns such as throwing, catching, kicking, and striking that form the foundation for more complex games and physical activities.

Ongoing gathering of evidence during instruction, used to adjust teaching and give feedback rather than to assign a final grade.

An evaluation administered at the end of a unit or course to measure how much learning has occurred against a standard.

Planning instruction so that content, process, or product is adjusted to fit students' varying readiness, interests, and learning profiles.

Temporary support, such as models, prompts, or guided practice, that a teacher provides so students can succeed at a task and then work independently.